- Paperback: 338 pages
- Publisher: Createspace (June 2010)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1453643818
- ISBN-13: 978-1453643815
- Product Dimensions: 22.4 x 15 x 2.3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 476 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #371,423 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
need some background,
This review is from: John Lennon and the Jews (Paperback)
A book that is somewhat different from my usual fare. At times very funny, but you definitely need some cultural and religious background to enjoy and get it. I have to read it again, just to understand all the points that I missed the first time around.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
5.0 out of 5 stars (3 customer reviews) 6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
a must read for all Jews,
By Andrew Pessin "60-second philosopher" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: John Lennon and the Jews (Paperback)
This is an extremely original and important book that ought to be read by every Jew, no matter what his or her affiliation or denomination, no matter where she or he stands on the long spectrum between strict religious observance and determined rejection of the same. Maghen -- an American-born Israeli scholar of Islamic law and politics but also something of a Talmid chacham and general know-everything-but-not-in-an-arrogant-way sort of guy -- has literally invented a new genre of writing, aptly self-titled the "rampage," which might best be described as the literary equivalent of three parts strong coffee, two parts Red Bull, and one part nuclear fusion. You pick this thing up and it practically supernovas right in your hand. But if you can hold on, you are in for a heck of a ride.In a very high-energy and very entertaining way, the book basically addresses the question of why, if you're Jewish, you should be Jewish, i.e. make your Jewishness a central and flourishing part of your identity - despite the fact that stressing your affiliation with an ancient tribe (in effect) seems, in this 21st century, to be not merely inconvenient and outdated but even downright irrational. Why be Jewish, after all, when there are so many other wonderful things you can more easily and contemporaneously and more rationally be: modern, progressive, scientific, secular, non-denominational, multicultural, an American, a European (etc.), or maybe a Citizen of the World, or maybe just an individual human being devoid of labels, period? But Maghen is rightly aware that this sort of question - pressing as it clearly is to large parts of the Jewish community - cannot be properly addressed, without ranging rather not only far and wide but also very deep. So off he goes. And off YOU'LL go. You may not agree with everything he says, but you will be challenged by it -- and in the process enjoy some really first-rate (and often very funny) writing. (I didn't agree with him in everything in my own book The God Question: What Famous Thinkers from Plato to Dawkins Have Said About the Divine but I still learned a lot from engaging with it.) 3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Philosophical Rampage,
By Zelda - Published on Amazon.com
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: John Lennon and the Jews (Paperback)
Re: John Lennon and the Jews - the sub title describes the book well.He hardly gives any philosopher a free ride - he ridicules, favours and disects each of them with humour and insight - there are so many layers to this book, that it is truly for very long term enjoyment. 7 of 11 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Imagine - but better read first,
By SnoopyTheGoon - Published on Amazon.com
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: John Lennon and the Jews (Paperback)
This is a great book. And, set aside your misgivings from the word "go" - it's not a boring opus that takes you to some antediluvian relative of John L. (or Paul M. for that matter) and tries to explain why Ringo sometimes looks like a... forget it, in short.And if, like I, you have never really listened to the words of Imagine, I promise that you will be delighted by the book from the beginning. And that it generously provides more and more delights as you continue to read it. The book's title includes words that may chill the initial enthusiasm and even prevent some careful and shy readers from opening the book. I mean the part where it says: "A Philosophical Rampage". There is no need to be afraid, I swear and promise. It is indeed philosophical, but, as stated, also a rampage, and one that it's a sheer pleasure to participate in. Because (and it's also a promise) participation is practically guaranteed, once you open the book. It is a rare gift the author of the book is blessed with: the gift of involving the reader, of making him a part of that philosophical endeavor, that exuberant and exhilarating journey through centuries, states, philosophies, beliefs... Ze'ev Maghen is a master of what Terry Pratchett called "headology". You should be careful too, his first time reader. When it starts to seem to you that the author has all the magic paraphernalia set up for his next conjuring trick and that he is ready to do the trick itself, his thumb and middle finger already coming together for a snap... when you are 100% sure, in short, my dear reader - you should realize that the trick has already happened. About ten or twenty pages ago. Just go back and re-read it... The book is a thrilling and stimulating read, even if you don't agree with everything the author believes in. The book is not written as a field manual but as a partner/opponent in a typically Jewish debate (way beyond a philosophical discussion, although a bit short of a fistfight). In short: read it, argue with it, enjoy it. |
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